The recent article about Joffery Ballet creating a reality T.V. show got me thinking about an age old question in the ballet world, how do we make ballet more accessible to the general public without sacrificing the artistic integrity of it? I suppose this question only applies in some countries though, mainly in North America. In places like Russia and parts of Europe, going to the ballet is like going to the movies, it is fairly cheap, always available and everyone from age 2-102 goes. It seems more like an event in North America. It is usually an evening out or a special afternoon in which everyone is dressed up and a big deal is made out of going. This is a hard one because on one hand, it should be an event, something special because it is an art form and there should be a certain reverence to it. At the same time, though, it shouldn't be such an ordeal that it is only done once or twice a year. It should be like Sunday Dinner, it is just another meal, but there is something a bit special to it, something that sets it apart from the other days of the week.

Shows like "So You Think You Can Dance" have helped introduce dance in to a more mainstream setting which is a good thing. Its emphasis is more on Hip Hop and modern type dancing though. Ballet is still left out on this one. Lots of ballet companies are trying new things like commissioning popular artists to write music for a new work. Atlanta Ballet did this and you can read the reviews here. I'm not quite sure this is the way to go though. I don't mean to say that girls must remain in tutus and the ballet has to be in four acts and it has to be classical music, quite the opposite actually, but I think going too far in the opposite direction puts it at risk of completely losing everything the art form stands for. Choreographers having been pushing limits for a while now. Exploring the use of the body in a way that breaks from the normal classical styling. They are using different music, lighting, costuming, and I think this is a step in the right direction. The art form has to evolve and grow as we grow and evolve as a society, if it doesn't it will die. Care must be taken, though, to ensure that the standards don't get pushed aside. Respect still has to be given to the things that came before. Swan Lake, Giselle and Sleeping Beauty will always be performed, as they should be, it is important to remember where we came from, but if we are to go forward and keep the audience growing we have to take a step forward.



I'm not sure how I feel about the Joffrey doing the T.V. show. I feel a bit protective about our inner sanctum being exposed to the outside world. One of the great things about being a dancer is company life. It is like being in a secret club, and only the others who are in the company really understand what goes on within the studio. I remember trying to explain it to others and they would just sit and look at me as if I were speaking Greek. What seemed so normal to me was actually a truly bizarre world. Perhaps, though, by exposing the secret life of the dancer, it will help audiences see us more as people and the art for as more of a form of entertainment rather than a grand event only to be splurged on once a year. Wouldn't it be wonderful if we could be a little more like Russia, where young children sit around watching ballet videos rather than Sesame Street and they know the names of the principal dancers like we know sports figures? Or perhaps they will totally cheapen the art form by playing up all the drama and making it into a horrible soap opera in tights. People would lose the fact that it is extremely hard, not only physically but mentally, and that in order to produce what you see on stage there are countless hours spent struggling, pushing, crying, and working harder than most people work in a lifetime to produce an amazing piece of art.

I am not sure how to go about making ballet mainstream, and I fear that it is a dying art. Perhaps a reality show would be good for it, only time will tell I suppose. Until then, I will continue to do my small part in support of it by spreading the word and helping to grow the upcoming audience by taking my little ones to see the ballet.

The problem for dance is the same as the problem for music: education. If kids learn from an early age to appreciate the arts then they will grow up to be intelligent consumers of the arts. If all they ever experience are the lower forms, they won't. It must help to live in community with a company led by someone you can respect and who take their responsibility to educate future audiences seriously.